


If We Really Want to Love, We Must Learn How to Forgive

by BinarySunsetLover15



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Established Relationship, F/M, Family, Repairing Relationships, Soft Ben Solo, Unplanned Pregnancy
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-30
Updated: 2020-06-25
Packaged: 2021-03-01 21:01:39
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 14,451
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23923540
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BinarySunsetLover15/pseuds/BinarySunsetLover15
Summary: Ben Solo receives a call notifying him that he needs to pick his parents up from the police station. This gives Rey the perfect opportunity to finally meet her boyfriend's parents.
Relationships: Leia Organa/Han Solo, Rey & Ben Solo | Kylo Ren, Rey/Ben Solo, Rey/Ben Solo | Kylo Ren
Comments: 28
Kudos: 295





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hi everyone, I am fairly new to writing for fandom so please be gentle! Writing is sort of cathartic for me after my experience with the TROS ending. I hope that if anyone is feeling as I am that this story can help, even a little. I hope you enjoy!

The sun was setting on the New York skyline when Ben finally reached the door of his apartment. As the snow began to fall, he cursed and slipped his hands out of his gloves to fumble with the keys to his apartment. Eventually getting his door open, Ben closed the door behind him.

Finally, inside, he rubbed his hands together trying to regain feeling in his fingers. The weather sure was taking a turn for the worst. He was just hoping that Rey would make it to his apartment without much trouble.

Rey had sort of happened unexpectedly. Their initial introduction from Poe had not gone smoothly, but on their second encounter, they ended up stumbling back to her apartment, probably making their taxi driver very uncomfortable.

After that night, Ben knew that this was it for him. Rey was his person. His future.

That had been almost a year ago, and they had been inseparable ever since. She took him with all of his flaws, and they created a little family that she hadn’t gotten growing up.

Ben walked into the small kitchen and began to heat up some leftovers from the fridge when he heard a firm knock on his door.

Knowing it would be Rey he jogged to the front door, not wanting to leave her outside in the freezing cold.

The frigid air blasted Ben as he yanked open his door. He lowered his gaze to meet Rey’s warm eyes. Smiling, he pulled her inside, Pressing her body against his, sealing the cold outside. She returned his enthusiastic greeting, pulling him close and pressing her face into his sweater, exhaling hard.

After a moment, they parted ways. Ben met Rey’s eyes again, she had a look in her eyes, one Ben couldn’t quite recognize. He went to ask her what the matter was, but she had already breezed past him, going into his apartment toward the kitchen.

He followed her into the apartment, finding that she had kicked off her shoes and was already snooping around what he had been warming up on the stove. If there was one thing that he had learned about Rey since they had begun their relationship it was that she was always on the hunt for food.

His worries about her disappeared instantly when he saw her face light up over the stove where dinner was currently being heated up. Her mind letting go of whatever was troubling her.

Ben came up behind Rey and wrapped his arms around her. Rey instantly relaxed back into him.

“How was your day” Rey questioned him.

“Busy, but good” he replied. Ben had just gotten a new job at a new law firm after finally escaping an awful job with a boss who Rey described as “An evil fuck, sent from the depths of Hell with no respect for any of his employees ”.

“I’m so happy you got out of that place” Rey sighed, leaning back further into him. “I couldn’t stand to see you so unhappy”.

Ben hummed in agreement, kissing the top of her head, focusing on the food on the stove and the girl currently in his arms. Rey had been the driving force, encouraging him to leave that awful job. He thanks whatever higher power is out there that she ended up in his life.

Although everything seemed normal, Ben noticed that Rey was being uncharacteristically quiet. He began to worry. Was something wrong? Was she sick? Was she going to break up with him? No. Everything had been fine with them since he had last saw her. Ben chalked it up to a long day at work and continued to stir their food.

When the food was warm, they moved to the living room and began to eat. Ben’s concern was growing as he eyed his girlfriend. Rey, who usually tore into her food, was now barely touching it.

Ben set his own food down and moved to sit closer to Rey on his old ratty couch. Ben took her small hands in his larger ones.

“Rey” Ben asked softly. “Are you okay” His eyes roaming over her face.

Rey looked up at his eyes, looking like she had something to tell him. Whatever it was, passed off her face and she gave him a small smile. “I’m perfectly fine Ben, I think I’m just tired”. She released one of his hands and brought hers up to his cheek, tracing the small scar that resided there.

She had a habit of doing that and Ben absolutely loved her for it. He savored all of her little touches.

Leaning up, she gave him a brief kiss, telling him that she was alright. As they parted, Ben still could tell she wanted to tell him something but became distracted when he remembered the one thing he had wanted to ask her tonight.

“Rey I have something I need to ask you—” Ben started.

“Ben I’m pregnant” Rey spit out so quickly, he almost thought that he missed it.

“You’re, what?” Ben spoke. Stunned, he couldn’t quite find words after that. It seemed as though the world stood still.

“I’m pregnant” Rey repeated, looking him up and down, trying to gauge his reaction.

After a moment of processing what she had just said a smile involuntarily split across Ben’s face. His hands finding their way around her body.

“You’re pregnant” Ben breathed out. Still smiling at the woman, he loved.

Ben then realized that tears had begun to fall down Rey’s cheeks. He was quick to place his hands on her face to brush them away.

“What’s wrong Rey?” he asked softly, brushing stray pieces of hair that had found their way in front of her face.

“This isn’t how it is supposed to happen,” Rey cried, her voice shaking. “I’m scared that I’m ruining our lives” she broke, crying harder.

  
Ben raised her face so that she was looking into his eyes “Rey don’t even say that. Nothing with you could ever ruin my life. Fuck however this was supposed to happen, if you want this baby, I want this baby.” He uttered.

“I want it” She whispered to him; her voice still uneven.

Ben smiled again. “Then this is the happiest moment of my life, and I wouldn’t want it to happen with anyone else.” He said

Rey’s features softened, taking in his words. “Ben we don’t even live together, how can we raise a baby”

“Well, would you like to?” Ben stated, pulling something out of his pocket. “Live together that is.” He then proceeded to show her a duplicate of his housekey that he had made earlier that day.

Rey couldn’t help it, she started crying again. Must be those damn pregnancy hormones, she thought. She then proceeded to throw her arms around Ben’s neck. Breathing a simple “yes” and smiling into his shoulder.

“We will figure this out” He assured her, arms tightening around her small frame.

Pulling back from their embrace, Rey leaned in to kiss Ben hard on the lips. Ben smiled into the kiss, hands reaching between them to gather on her flat stomach.

“We’re going to have a baby” Ben spoke, a smile never leaving his face, tears of his own threatening to fall down his own face

Rey simply nodded and gave Ben a small laugh. He couldn’t find words to describe his happiness. He continued to press kisses all over her face as she laughed. At that point in time, Ben knew he had everything he wanted. Nothing could ruin this moment.

And then his phone rang.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> We finally find out about that phone call! Rey loves the idea of finally meeting Ben's parents, even if it is in jail.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi everyone! I'm so shocked anyone would even read this but it made me so happy knowing that people are! Writing this story has been so much fun. I can't wait to continue this piece and I cannot stop thinking of ideas for future stories! I hope you all like this chapter!

The buzzing sound of Ben’s phone cut through the happy atmosphere. The young couple broke from each other’s gaze to look down at the interruption.

It was an unknown number. As a lawyer, it wasn’t that uncommon to get these types of calls, but Ben wanted to go back to basking in their happy moment. Whoever it was could call again tomorrow.

“You should answer that” Rey stated, locking eyes with him.

“I don’t want to answer it” Ben responded. “I just want to sit here with you” He stated, fingering the fabric of her shirt imagining what she will look like in a few months. 

“It could be important if they are calling so late” Rey replied. “Just answer it so you can get it over with.” She smiled, kissing his cheek.

Sighing, Ben reluctantly picked up his phone and pressed his thumb to the call button.

“Ben Solo” He sighed into the phone, looking at Rey. She had a curious look in her eye. Like she was trying to determine who she needed to put a hit out on for interrupting their happy moment.

“Ben, honey, it’s your mother” said a voice Ben hadn’t heard in quite a long time spoke across the line.

Stunned, Ben blinked his eyes in confusion. This was not how he thought this call was going to go. He thought he was going to answer a quick work call, spit out an excuse to leave, and go back to kissing Rey for the rest of the night. He certainly wasn’t expecting a call from his mother.

Ben’s relationship with his parents was anything but conventional. He had left at 18 and never looked back. His teenage years were filled with absent nights from his mother, fights with his father that led to Han storming out for days on end. Only recently had he begun to let them back into his life. But he certainly hadn’t been expecting a call from his mother tonight.

Rey’s concerned look pierced into his face. She tilted her head in wonder, wanting to know who was leaving her boyfriend so speechless.

Ben slowly shook his head back and forth, looking lost.

“Ben? Are you still there?” Rey could hear faintly on the other end of the call.

“Y—Yes” Ben finally stammered out. “Why are you calling? Whose phone is this”. Ben might not have had the best relationship with his parents, but at least he still had their phone numbers.

“Well you see we are in a bit of a sticky situation” Leia said slowly into the phone. Ben still had no idea what to think, he absentmindedly gripped Rey’s leg that was in his lap.

“We are fucking locked up, Kid” Shouted the voice of his father.

Rey’s eye widened, obviously not knowing all of what was happening on the other side of the call, just registering that it was obviously Ben’s parents. Ben’s eyes fell closed as he groaned.

Ben unwrapped himself from Rey and stood up. “What do you mean, you got arrested?” He questioned, still stunned. He began to pace in his small living room. Rey’s eye followed his movements, still confused by the whole ordeal.

“Slow down, just explain what happened?” Rey listened to Ben speak into the phone. No longer could Rey hear what was happening on the other side of the conversation.

“A misunderstanding? How is getting arrested a misunderstanding?” Ben shot into the phone angrily. His hand ran through his hair before tightening into a fist at his side.

Rey began to get worried. She knew that Ben didn’t have the best relationship with his parents but compared to her completely absent parents it was a least something. Rey knew that Ben was never happily talking about his family. It was always a touchy subject, much like her own.

She broke her train of thought just to hear Ben exhale loudly into the phone. “Fine. Fine. Fine, have them send me the information, I’ll be there in an hour” He spoke. Before hanging up his phone, throwing it harshly on the chair next to him.

Rey watched Ben collapse on the opposite side of the couch, grunting as he sat down, looking absently into the open space in front of him.

Slowly Rey stood up and moved closer to him. Sitting down, she took his hand. “Ben what was that about” She finally asked breaking the quiet.

“My parents have been detained for public intoxication” He stated, closing his eyes. “They need to be picked up”

“Oh” was all that Rey could say. She was stunned. That wasn’t what she expected to come out of his mouth. Although she knew this was a difficult situation, she couldn’t help but perk up. She had always selfishly wanted to meet his parents, learn about the people who raised the man she fell in love with.

Rey’s eyes slid over to his face, trying to read what was going on in his brain. She gripped his hand harder, trying to provide some sense of comfort.

“So where are we picking them up?” Rey questioned.

“We? No, Rey, I’m going alone. I’m not subjecting you to that insanity” Ben said releasing her hand and standing up to walk toward his laptop sitting on the kitchen table.  
  


“Well, of course, I’m coming Ben, you are going to need help!” Rey shot back, following him to the other room where he was collecting the information on where his parents were being held.

“Rey, You aren’t coming, and that’s final.” Ben told her sternly.

“Why not?” She spoke crossing her arms, taking a defensive stance. “Do you not want your parents to meet the girl you just knocked up? I know you have a strained relationship with them, but I would’ve thought that after a year of being together you would’ve taken me to meet them at least once!” Rey said, getting angry.

Ben looked shocked at her words. “Rey you know that isn’t it.” He spoke. “I’m not keeping you a secret; I just don’t want the best thing in my life to be subjected to them.” Ben moved toward her, looking to take her hand. Rey backed up.

“Ben, nothing about them or your past will scare me away. I’m here for the long run in case you haven’t noticed!” She said, gesturing to her still flat stomach. “I want a chance to decide about them for myself!”.  
  


Ben knew that Rey wasn’t going to let this go. “Rey” he breathed reluctantly.

“Ben, you know I never got a choice in knowing, my family. I won’t bring this child into this world robbing them of not knowing their family as well. I won’t let them feel as though someone abandoned them.” Rey trembled. “Like I did”.

Ben watched the tears gather in her eyes. He pulled her into an embrace instinctively. She responded with wrapping her arms around his waist. Ben’s heart broke. He knew she struggled with her absent family. He hurt knowing he caused her some pain by keeping his family from her.

“Okay fine.” Ben relented, realizing that it was unfair to keep Rey from making this decision for herself. “But don’t forget that I said that this was a bad idea.”

“Thank you” came a muffled response from his shoulder. They stayed like this until Rey’s breathing had evened out.

Pulling away, Ben looked into Rey’s eyes, still red from crying but slowly reverting back to the same eyes that filled him with so much love.

Leaning in, Ben brushed a quick kiss on Rey’s lips. She could feel that he was nervous. “I’m sure that it won’t be that bad.” Rey assured him.

“You don’t know my parents.” Ben responded.

“And whose fault is that?” Rey responded smiling and knocking his shoulder with his, trying to lighten the mood.

Ben’s lips quirked upward, a ghost of a smile. “Come on, let’s get this over with.”

Breaking apart, they moved toward the closet to grab their coats from where they were draped over a kitchen chair.

“We aren’t telling them about the baby yet” Ben spoke as helped Rey put her coat on. Smiling slowly, remembering what they had been celebrating before they had been interrupted.

“Well of course not! That would be a second or third date kind of announcement” Rey spoke jokingly, winding her hand in Ben’s as they made their way to his car. He gave her a small laugh, thankful that they were back to being playful with each other.

Ben watched as Rey smiled, her cheeks turning red from the bitter wind. He pulled her closer, wrapping an arm around her waist and kissed her temple as they made it across the street to where his car was parked. He couldn’t help it as a smile turned up on his face, she really was the best part of his life.

Breaking apart and walking to opposite sides of his car, the pair climbed into the vehicle and buckled up.

Rey watched Ben as he fumbled with his keys. She could tell he was nervous. Rey knew she should be too. Wondering if his parents would like her, or if this was the only time she would get to meet them. She hoped not.

A selfish part of her always wanted Ben to reconcile with his parents. When he told her a few months ago that he had met with his mother for the first time in 2 years, her heart fluttered. Not wanting to push him, she stayed patient. Now she would have her opportunity.

“Here, plug in the directions to the police station” Ben muttered, handing her his phone. She couldn’t help but give a small laugh at the situation they were currently in. She could hear him exhaling as if to disapprove, but Rey found a hint of amusement in his reaction also. This made her smile widen.

As Ben pulled out of the parking spot, following the directions the automated voice was projecting to him, he gave a shaky breath.

Rey knew that this was going to be hard for him. Reaching her hand across the console she tangled her fingers with his free hand. His eyes found hers briefly, and he gave her a nervous smile before turning his eyes back to the road.

“Everything will be fine” She spoke softly. Her thumb drawing circles into his hand. Ben tapped the wheel nervously, wishing he had just ignored the phone call.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next chapter we will be meeting the infamous Han and Leia! Thanks for reading!


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The wonderful Han and Leia finally make their appearance! Emotions ensue!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi all, I have just found myself obsessed with writing this. Hence another chapter! Hope you are still enjoying the story!

The snow was coming down hard as Ben and Rey pulled into the parking lot of the Bespin police station, the sun had finally set. Ben flipped off the headlights and turned off the car.

Sitting in the dark, Rey looked across the seats trying to meet Ben’s eyes. He refused to look at her. Their ride over had been spent in silence, the tapping of Ben’s fingers on the wheel the only thing filling the space.

“Ben, you know that I love you more than anything right?” Rey spoke, her hand still tangled with his from the ride over.

“I know” Ben responded, his voice shaking. “I just wasn’t ready for you to be sucked into this world yet.”

“I get that Ben, but you don’t have to protect me, this was going to happen at some point”  
Rey replied. “I want to know this part of your life”.

Ben finally found her eyes and stared at her. Rey looked back at him with adoration. She had never been looked at quite like that by anyone except for Ben. “I love you” he whispered only to her.

“I know” Rey replied simply.

“Now let’s go, we can’t leave your parents sitting in jail for the night” Rey stated.

“I mean that’s not your worst idea” Ben deadpanned before unbuckling himself.

The pair exited the car and began the walk to the front entrance of the station. The snow had continued to fall, their feet leaving tracks on the asphalt of the parking lot. The walk seemed far too short for Ben who was growing more nervous every step.

Ben’s hand gripped the door to the station, the metal cold in his hand. Giving the handle a firm tug, he led Rey into the lobby of the building. Walking up to the front desk, the couple was met with a cold stare of the desk worker, who obviously didn’t want to be there.

Surprisingly it was Rey who spoke first. “Um, we are here to pick up Han and Leia Solo”. The Desk worker grunted and produced a few sheets of paperwork, shoving them across the desk toward Rey. Ben intercepted the papers and grabbed a pen out of the cup on the table turning to walk toward the chairs.

Rey followed Ben to the waiting area where he began filling out the paperwork.

“I cannot believe I am picking up my parents from jail right now” Ben stated. Rey simply gave him a small laugh and leaned on his shoulder, trying to read the paperwork that he was signing.

Ben continued to sign all the papers before standing up to give them back to the grumpy front desk worker. “They should be out in a few minutes” the desk worker stated, retreating into the back of the office, presumably to where his parents were being held.

Ben made his way back to where Rey was sitting. He sat down and took her hand.

“Are you nervous for them to meet me?” Rey spoke softly. Ben looked down at her face where he found uncertainty.

“I’m more embarrassed that you are meeting them when they are absolutely shitfaced” Ben replied trying to lighten her mood.

Rey smiled at him. “Well I hope I get some good stories to tell our child out of them tonight” she said squeezing his hand.

As the minutes ticked on and the appearance of his parents quickly approaching, Rey could tell that Ben was getting more nervous. His foot tapped quicker on the floor, his hand in hers grew warmer.

“Do you think I’m a bad son?” Ben quietly blurted out.

Rey looked up quickly. “What?”. She was shocked to hear Ben’s words.

“I just shut them out of my life 10 years ago without a real explanation.” Ben continued to ramble. “I mean don’t get me wrong they weren’t the best of parents, but they were a lot better than others, I mean you didn’t even have parents Rey.”

Rey stared at Ben’s face, trying to read his emotions before speaking.

“Ben, we all make mistakes and I am not going to pretend to know everything that happened before you left. But you are trying now. You reached out to your parents and are trying to fix your relationship.” Rey spoke firmly to him. “I think that your parents will simply be happy to have you back in their life.”

Ben was silent for a few moments, contemplating what Rey had said.

“What if I mess our kid up and they end up running away like me?” Ben asked unevenly, his voice full of worry.

Rey squeezed his hand. “Ben” Rey started. “I don’t know how to be a parent, but I know you and I know all the love you have to give to our child. And after all, we will be together. We will make mistakes together, we will learn together, and if our kid is going to get messed up, it will be our doing together” Rey finished looking into his eyes.

“I’m so glad you are here”. Ben replied softly. Rey grinned at him in response leaning up to kiss his cheek. “I’m so glad you let me be here” she whispered back.

Their quiet moment was interrupted by the banging of a door opening. “Ben!”

Ben looked up to see his mother being escorted out of the backroom by a police officer. Following close behind was his father and another officer. Ben jumped out of his chair to meet them at the door, giving one last glance at Rey who gave him an encouraging smile.

“See Han, I told you he would come for us!” Leia exclaimed a little too loudly. Ben winced a little at the volume of her voice, guessing that it had been at that level all night.

“Are they yours?” The first officer asked Ben.

“Yes…I guess they are” Ben answered, “Why were they brought in?” he asked the officer, genuinely curious as to how they ended up in this predicament.

“Well as you could guess, public intoxication but also for being a public nuisance, yelling in the streets, among other stuff.” The officer replied. Ben was thankful that the officer was being more pleasant than the front desk worker.

“Oh please” Leia started “We were simply out for a few drinks with Lando. The others at the bar were overreacting when they called the cops.” Ben rolled his eyes at his mother, know just how rowdy his parents could get when they got together with their old friend Lando.

“Who’s the Girl” Han interjected. Ben saw that his parents' gaze had landed on Rey who was standing next to her chair still, waiting for Ben to finish up with the officer.

Ignoring Han’s outburst, Ben turned back to the officer. “Thank you for releasing them” he said quickly before grabbing his parents and turning toward Rey. This made Ben want to release his parents, grab Rey, and run out of the door.

As they approached Rey, she smiled and held out her hand toward his parents “Hi, I’m Rey” she spoke to them. Ben held his breath.

Han and Leia stole a confused glance between the two of them. Han then reached out and shook her hand. “Is she a lawyer friend, Ben? Did you really think we needed someone for this release?” Han deadpanned.

“Oh, Han don’t be rude!” Leia exclaimed reaching out to shake Rey’s hand. “Let the girl speak”. Leia was obviously trying to figure out who Rey was, eyeing her up and down.

“Mom, Dad, this is Rey, my girlfriend” Ben clarified, placing his hand on Rey’s lower back. Although he projected this action as support for her, it was really more for him.’

Han and Leia’s eyes shot up to him. They looked stunned but the corners of his mother’s mouth were turning up.

“Well, its nice of Ben to finally bring a girl home” Han said. “Perfect timing, considering the circumstances too” Han replied, a slight annoyance leaked into his voice. The alcohol still in his system obviously lowering his tolerance for good manners.

Ben rolled his eyes and chose to ignore his father’s comment. “Let’s just get you guys home” Ben replied. Grabbing his father’s arm and leading him toward the door.

Rey locked eyes with Leia. The older woman obviously was a little out of it but still gave Rey a warm smile. This encouraged Rey to offer Leia her arm guide her outside to the car. Gratefully, Leia hung on Rey’s arm, as the two women silently followed Ben and Han out into the cold.

As they walked, Leia gripped Rey’s arm to avoid slipping in the fresh snow. Rey glanced at the pair in front of them. She could hear Han speaking to Ben but couldn’t quite make out what they were talking about. From the looks of it, it didn’t look like the most pleasant of conversations.

Once the younger members of the group situated the older folks in the back seat of Ben’s car, Rey found Ben’s eyes. “I’m sorry about them, I know that they are a lot right now” Ben spoke to her. The falling snow decorating his hair with white flakes.

“Don’t worry Ben, it's fine. Let’s just get them home to bed.” Rey replied, Her hand meeting his cheek, tracing his scar. His eyes closed at her touch. Ben could’ve stayed there all night, but he adversely remembered the drunks in the back seat of his car. “Thank you for being here” He said giving her a quick peck on her lips. Rey gave him a smile and nodded, pushing him toward the driver’s side of the car.

By the time Ben had shifted the car into drive, Han was already asleep in the back seat. Leia wasn’t far behind, her eyes beginning to drift home. “Ben you could’ve told me you had a beautiful girlfriend” Leia spouted. Even in the dark, Ben could tell Rey’s cheeks were burning. “We can talk about it later Mom” Ben replied, reaching his hand across the middle console to grab Rey’s hand. With that, Leia began to snooze in the back seat.

The rest of the ride back to his parent’s house was silent. Rey wanted to ask if Ben knew where he was going, but he seemed to be on autopilot.

After about 20 minutes, he pulled into a driveway of a fairly large house. Turning off the car, Rey and Ben slowly got the sleepy, drunken pair out of the back seat and into their bed in the house. 

Closing the door to his parents' room, Ben quietly walked down the hall of his childhood home to find Rey in the living room. He internally let out a groan when he realized she was looking at his old family pictures. “Oh Ben, these are so cute” She said showing him a photo of him as a young child.

Ben snatched the photo away from her and held the phot behind his back. “Nope we aren’t going into that tonight,” He said, moving the picture around avoiding her arms. “Aw come on Ben! I’m just trying to imagine what our baby is going to look like!” Rey countered but finally relented, knowing that there was no way of her getting the photo back from her obnoxiously tall boyfriend.

Ben smiled at the mention of the baby. He set the photo down on a side table and wrapped his arms around her. Glancing at the clock above the couch, Ben noticed it was nearing midnight.

“We should probably get going before we get too tired,” Ben said. As if to respond to him, Rey immediately yawned. She looked up into his face with tired eyes.

“You really think it is a good idea to leave your two inebriated parents’ home alone? Maybe we should just stay the night.” Rey coaxed him. “Besides the snow is getting thick outside, driving conditions may be rough.”

  
Ben groaned at the sight out the window, noticing the thick white blanket of snow covering the ground. He looked down at Rey, her eyes had a bit of hope in them. She wanted to stay so that she could further meet his parents.

Knowing how excited Rey was to actually meet his parents, and him really not wanting to drive the 45 minutes back to the city in the snow, Ben relented.

“Fine, we can stay the night” Ben gave into her. Rey immediately smiled, burying her face into Ben’s shoulder.   
  
“I know this is hard for you but thank you for trying for me.” Rey softly spoke to him, her arms around his waist getting impossibly tighter. Ben sighed, leaning his face into her hair.

“Let’s go to bed, it's late,” Ben said as he unwrapped his arms from around her. Leading her upstairs by the hand.

Entering his old room, Ben was flooded with a million emotions. It had been kept up, his bed still made and some of his clothes still in his closet. It was as if he never had left. Realizing his mother kept his room waiting for him to come home, tears threatened to appear at his eyes.  
  
Rey paused in front of his old closet before fingering the old clothes, pulling out a shirt before pulling off her own clothes. Ben paused to look at her stomach, still flat, but something seemed different. This made him smile. Rey swiftly pulled the shirt over her head and smirked at where she found his eyes lingering.

Rey leaned up to kiss Ben. “I love you so much” She whispered to him like she had a thousand times before. Each time made his heart flutter. “Thank you for letting me into your world” she spoke, ending it with another brief kiss before pulling Ben down on his old bed with her.

Ben curled his arms around Rey, his hands finding her stomach, realizing that this was quickly becoming his favorite thing to do.

Ben finally let himself exhale all of his worries from that night, relaxing into his lovers' arms. They could have this quiet moment before dealing with his parents tomorrow. 


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Leia and Han finally meet Rey. Ben is apprehensive about his father. It goes as smoothly as you'd expect.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi all! Happy may the forth! I'm sorry for not updating in a few days, I have been busy with school and I went to go visit my parents for the weekend. I will try to post the next chapter either tomorrow or the next day! I hope you enjoy this chapter!

Leia woke up with a pounding in her head. She slowly sat up looking, around her bedroom. The light peeking through the shades was beaming into her eyes. Her gaze falls on Han still sleeping next to her. A smile perked up on her face seeing her lover.

Her daydream was interrupted by the pounding in her head and her aching body. _“What happened last night” she wondered._

Leia swung her legs over the side of the bed, bringing her feet to rest on the ground. Unsteadily she rose to her feet. Her body felt like it had been hit by a truck. She hoped Han would be waking up soon, she needed to ask him what they did last night.

Looking at Han’s sleeping figure, Leia deduced that he was still dead asleep. _“I guess the explanation will have to wait”._

Leia began to ease herself toward the door intending to go downstairs to get a glass of water. The door creaked open and she slowly moved toward the stairs.

Just about as Leia’s foot was about to hit the first step, she was struck with a laugh emanating from the lower level. _“who is in my house?”_ she asked herself. Although she was slightly alarmed, there was a comforting aura about the sound.

Such a sweet sound she mused.

Carefully creeping down the stairs she peeked around the corner silently. She found the living room empty save for two jackets draped over the couch. The warm laugh came again, followed by a new laugh with a different tone. Turning her head, she noticed the scene going on in the kitchen.   
  
It was her son, it was Ben, he had come home. A smile ghosted Leia’s face. Even if she was confused by the sight, she was overjoyed that he was home and apparently laughing.   
  
Her eyes continued to move across the scene falling on the new figure. _“A girl?”_

Even more confused by the situation, Leia watched them with curious eyes. The pair was completely unaware of her presence, lost in each other. She observed her son and this girl, watching as they cooked breakfast. They moved around the kitchen completely aware of the other, moving as if they knew where the other was going to be.

_Why were they here?_ Leia thought. Why wouldn’t Ben have told them they were coming. Even though she had recently begun meeting Ben for breakfast every month, they certainly weren’t at a point in their relationship where he would just drop by.

“Ben, can you hand me the spatula” the girl spoke. The girl was standing at the stove stirring something in a pan. Ben passed her the spatula wordlessly before going to stand next to her. From what Leia could see, the girl was very pretty. Despite the early hour, and her hair somewhat messy up in a few buns, she still made it work. She had an athletic built, but her small frame was dwarfed next to Ben.

“You know you don’t have to do this Rey” Ben spoke to her quietly. _“Rey”_ Leia put together that this was obviously her name.

Rey turned her attention away from the pan on the stove. “I want to Ben” she responded. “Besides I doubt your parents will have the energy to make food when they wake up. You don’t want them to stave, do you?” She jokingly scolded him, poking him in the side with her fingers.

Ben grunted in return, placing a hand on her waist. Leia’s eyes widened at the action.

“Come on, tell me the rest of the story about Poe” Rey spoke again, trying to resume their laughing from earlier. At the mention of this Ben smiled and began to speak again. Small laughs from the couple interrupting the story every now and then.

Leia couldn’t bring herself to focus on whatever they were laughing about. All she could see was the bright smile on Ben’s face. It was something she hadn’t seen in years. He looked so carefree and comfortable around this girl. If Leia wasn’t so shocked by the situation, she would be happy. Her son was finally home and was evidently happy.

Leia’s stare was broken when Rey leaned up and pecked her son on the lips. It was a brief kiss, but Leia could tell there was a lot of love behind it. It was an innocent enough kiss but felt weirdly intimate. She suddenly felt as if she was intruding on something. Leia quietly turned away and crept silently back up the staircase. She stumbled back into her bedroom, closing the door behind her. She then rushed to the bed and shook Han awake.

“Ben is home and he brought a girl!” Leia stammered out at her groggy husband.

Han mumbled a string of incoherent words into his pillow. “What?” Leia questioned, further shaking Han awake.

Turning over so that he was lying upright, Han’s tired eyes met hers. “Yes, I know they dragged us home last night” He responded.

Instantly as soon as Han spoke those words memories from the previous night came flooding back. Han and her deciding to go out to celebrate their anniversary, getting a little too rowdy and being escorted out of the bar by the cops, stumbling out the lobby at the police station and into the arms of Ben and an unknown woman, lastly sitting in the backseat of Ben’s car barely aware of the two hands clasped in the front seats.

“Ben has a girlfriend” Leia repeated. “He looks happy” clear tears began to form at the corners of her eyes.

“What’s wrong with that?” Han asked her, sounding uninterested

“I just feel like we missed so much with him leaving. We pushed him too hard and we lost so much time with him.” Leia rambled.

“And whose fault is that” Han angrily expressed.

“No. Don’t do that.” Leia began “We just started to get him back, and bringing up the past is just going to push him away again”

Han just gave her a look before relenting and nodding his head slightly. “Okay let’s go meet this girl then”.

The pair began to move back downstairs, hearing the soft voices speaking downstairs. They must’ve heard them coming, the voices falling silent as they got to the bottom of the stairs.

Turning the corner, Han and Leia came face to face with the young couple sitting at the kitchen table. The pair froze when they made eye contact with Ben’s parents who had emerged from the upper part of the house.

Ben looked very apprehensive, a hand stretched across the table, placed over one of the girl’s. Rey looked nervous her eyes sliding between Han and Leia’s. Ben pulled his hand away once he felt the prying eyes of his parents. Leia felt a small stab at this movement, he was still guarding this part of his life.

Breaking the tension Ben spoke lightly. “There is extra food on the counter”. Wordlessly his parents moved into the kitchen grabbing plates and food before settling at the table with the younger couple.

The air was thick with years of unspoken words. Ben and Han still hadn’t made eye contact.

“Thank you so much for picking us up last night” Leia spoke, breaking the silence. “I realize it must’ve been an inconvenience for the two of you.”

“Of course, mom” Ben replied. His voice still neutral, testing the conversation. Silence filled the space between the four.

Turning to the girl sitting next to Ben, Leia spoke directly to her. “It’s nice to meet you properly, I know that we were a little out of it last night”.

“A little” Ben said sarcastically under his breath. Rey’s jabbed her elbow into his side. Turning back to his parents. Rey’s features had lit up a little. The girl was very pretty, she was almost glowing.

“It’s nice to finally meet you as well!” Rey spoke cheerily. “It’s always wonderful to see more of Ben’s life.”

Finally making his presence known, Han spoke across the table “Yes, it is nice of Ben to finally share some of his life with us.” The words were mundane enough, but Rey caught on to a small amount of malice in his voice.

Ben’s eyes flew up to glare at his father.

“So how long have you been together,” Leia said, trying to ease the tension between the father and son.

“Almost a year” Ben replied gruffly. Leia noticed Rey’s hand coming to grab Ben’s under the table. This seemed to ease Ben’s anger a bit.

“And what do you do for work Rey?” Leia questioned the girl, trying to steer the conversation away from any heavy topics that could result in an argument.

“I work at Alliance engineering” Rey chirped, obviously passionate about the subject, going on about her current project. Leia noticed that Ben was watching her intensely as she spoke, his lips quirking upward listening to her go on about her work.

“I wanted Ben to go into mechanical engineering in college so that he could work for me” Han spoke. Leia held her breath. “But that obviously didn’t work out”. Ben’s small smile morphed into a scowl directed at his father.

If looks could kill Han would be 12 feet under right now. 6 feet from Ben, 6 feet from Leia.

Silence overtook the table, the tension waiting to be shattered. Rey’s hand in Ben’s didn’t seem to stop him from his next outburst.

“You knew I never wanted to do that! You just pushed it because Luke taught it and you wanted to get me out of your life.” Ben fired at his father.

“And look at what happened when you left university!” Han spoke, his voice rising. “You went to work for that awful company full of liars and thieves, not to mention you didn’t talk to your own parents for almost 7 years.”

Leia wanted to yell at the two men to stop fighting but she knew that there was no stopping either of them in this fight. Rey was simply looking down at the table.

“You pushed me away” Ben yelled back at Han. “You would leave for days and weeks at a time going god knows where”

“Well if you hate me so much what are you even still doing here!” Han screamed.

Ben looked taken back at his accusation. His eyes glancing over to Rey. His demeanor changed as he glanced at his lover. Leia could tell there was something going on but couldn’t put her finger on what it was.

Without looking Han in the eyes Ben spoke softly, his eyes still caught on Rey. “We will be leaving as soon as the roads are safe enough to drive on”. His eyes looked dead, like they had when they had sent him off to school all those years ago. Leia’s heart hurt at the memory.

“Ben you know you both can stay as long as you like” Leia whispered toward his son.

“I’m not going to stay in a place where I’m not wanted.” Ben replied flatly. He then proceeded to stand up, squeeze Rey’s hand and walk down the hall back to the guest bedroom.

Han grunted, he pushed himself away from the table before walking down the hall to another part of the house. This left Rey and Leia alone with only silence stretching between him.

“I’m sorry about that” Leia spoke to the girl. Rey’s eyes slide up to meet hers. She offered a small smile.

“I know they have a hard relationship” she replied, “I know that there is a lot of hurt still there”

Leia looked at the girl. Ben had obviously confided his past in this girl. Rey seemed to understand her son on a level that Leia envied.

“I’m glad he has you” Leia responded, giving Rey a small smile. Rey reciprocated the look, reaching over to place her hand on Leia’s. “Thank you for having us here”.

“Of course, my dear, you are always welcome here” Rey smiled at this, Leia didn’t know it but secretly this was what she wanted, a family, even if Ben’s family had a lot of baggage, she still had enjoyed coming here.

“The snow isn’t supposed to stop until tonight, so we will probably leave in the morning” Rey informed Leia. Leia nodded at this. “Maybe we could shove Ben and Han in a closet together to work out their issues” Rey spoke jokingly.

Leia laughed, realizing she was beginning to really like this girl. Their eyes both shining, Rey already felt a connection with Ben’s mother. She hoped it could continue.

Rey gave Leia’s hand one more squeeze before standing up from the table. “I guess I should go calm him down” Rey said, pointing to the guest bedroom down the hall.

Leia gave her a nod before the girl disappeared down the hall. Leia sighed. This wasn’t how breakfast was supposed to go. She would have to go have a word with Han. At least it wasn’t all bad, her eyes glancing down the hallway that Rey had just disappeared down. Leia really liked that girl, hopefully together they could begin to mend a father and son’s broken relationship.


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> We see the aftermath of Ben and Han's fight.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi everyone! So sorry I haven't updated in a few days. School got really busy all of a sudden with finals coming up! I how you enjoy this chapter and again thank you for reading!

Standing in front of the bedroom door, Rey could feel the tension radiating from behind it. Her hand gripped the knob with uncertainty. She had never dealt with Ben in the aftermath of a fight with his father. Sure, they have had conversations in the past about him, but this was new territory for Rey.

She paused for another moment, unsure of what she would encounter on the other side of the door. Would Ben still be angry? Hurt? Sad? She didn’t know, but she did know that he needed her and that she couldn’t leave him alone.

Entering the room, Rey was met with a seemingly empty space. Ben was nowhere to be found. Looking around the room, Rey’s eyes landed on the bathroom door. Time seemed to freeze. She was again uncertain about how to continue but willed herself forward.

Crossing the room, Rey focused all of her energy on the conversation in front of her. Small, noises emanated from behind the bathroom door, signaling Rey to the life behind it.

Placing her hand on the door, Rey gave a small knock. “Ben?” She questioned out to the wood of the doorframe next to her face.

With no response but still hearing the small noises of movement come from the other side of the door, Rey pushed into the room.

Her eyes met his in the reflection of the mirror. It looked like Ben had aged years in a few minutes, the confrontation weighing him down. There was a small trail of tears that had made their way down his cheeks, one of them following the scar on the right side of his face. She loved his scar, it was something he hated, but she thought was so beautiful.

Rey moved toward him immediately, seeing that he was hurting affected her. She felt that this was her fault for bringing him here. All she wanted was to take his pain away.

Gripping his hands, she turned him away from the mirror, so that they were standing across from each other.

“Ben” She repeated. His eyes bore into hers, letting her know everything he was feeling. Ben never was good at hiding anything, his face always said how he felt. This was something she loved about him. She never had to guess his emotions.

“I don’t hate him” Ben spoke suddenly, his voice almost breaking. “I never hated him.” He repeated.

“I know” Rey responded firmly. The story of Ben and his father was always one of odds. They were always at odds, but it never came from a place of hate. She briefly wondered what Han was doing at that moment, if he was hurting too. If he truly thought that his son hated him.

Tears began to form on both of their faces again. Ben’s eyes dropped between them. Rey continued to stare at his face.

“He just drives me up the wall. Everything I did was never enough. I wanted to make him proud, but all I ever did was fail in his eyes.” Ben began to rant. Rey could barely hang onto all the words that were falling from his lips. “I ruined our family”.

Rey’s heart broke seeing how Ben truly viewed himself. “That’s not true Ben. You can’t really believe that.”

Ben’s hands couldn’t stop shaking in her hands. “He obviously doesn’t want me here. He made that very clear just now”.

Rey could feel the weight of being back in his childhood home finally come down on her. It was unbearable. Rey wondered how he had able to contain his old wounds for as long as he did. They had always been there; seeing his father had just cut them back open.

“I think you are giving him too much credit Ben” Rey replied. She was trying to be gentle with him, but she needed to project to him how she perceives him. “ You were the person they called when they needed help. If they really didn’t want you here they would’ve called someone else.”

“I just don’t want to ruin your chance at having a family because I end up like him.” Ben whispered out.

“Ben” Rey breathed out. She couldn’t stand to see him so alone. “If you want to leave, we’ll leave. If you want to leave and never come back, I’m with you. We could never bring our child here and I’ll support that if that’s what you truly want. You are my family and you will always be enough for me.” Rey spoke to him. The words we completely true, she couldn’t see a scenario in her life where he wasn’t there.

Ben’s face finally rose to meet hers. He looked at her with his beautiful eyes, the ones she loved so much.

“You don’t think I’ll ruin our child” He spoke, hope skirting on the edge of his words.

“Ben, you are the one who has shown me how to love and there has never been a doubt in my mind about your ability to love. Our child will see that. She spoke the words with a firmness, pushing the belief into his mind.

Rey looked into Ben’s eyes, trying to see how he was processing her words. A moment ago, they had been filled with sadness and regret, they were now filled with love and purpose. He smiled.

Ben reached behind her to wrap his arms around her middle, pulling her into his space. His hand resumed its place on her stomach. They embraced there, the room feeling with content.

Ben breathed in the woman in his arms, he couldn’t believe that he could deserve such a being.

“I know it is hard opening back up to him” Rey said quietly, her voice muffled from being buried in Ben’s chest. Ben hummed in response.

“But I know you want to repair this.” Rey finished.

She could feel Ben’s words at her shoulder. “You right and I too want our child to grow up feeling loved”. She exhaled, pressing further into him.

“That and I’m sure your mother would kill us if she found out about a grandchild she didn’t know about”. Rey spoke truthfully.

Ben released a breathy laugh that Rey welcomed back gratefully. Pulling away, their eyes found each other once more. “Thank you” Ben spoke simply.

“I love you” Rey responded with a smile before leaning up to brush her lips against his.

Pulling away Ben smiled, they walked hand and hand out of the small room.

—

Later that night, Ben and Rey walked back into his bedroom where they embraced once more. This would be their last night here, the snow had stopped falling outside and the roads would be clear by morning.

They had spent the day around the house with Leia, looking at old photos, talking more about their life. Han came in and out of the scene once or twice, but never for longer than a second. Ben and he said nothing. There was still tension floating in the air, but it came more from uncertainty rather than anger.

The day had been exhausting and Ben could tell that Rey needed sleep. He felt bad that she had to entertain his mother as well as grow another being.

Guiding her to the bathroom, they prepared for sleep in comfortable silence before laying down beside each other and whispering sweet words to one another. When the topic of baby names came up, Ben could tell that Rey was barely holding on to consciousness.

“Get some sleep Rey, I’ll still be here to talk to when you wake up” Ben spoke, brushing his lips on her forehead. He reached over to turn the lamp off. “We will have plenty of time to discuss in the car tomorrow”.

Rey hummed contently in response, closing her eyes and letting sleep consume her. Smiling down at her, Ben took a moment to look over her face. By now he had memorized every dip and protrusion, and he loved each one immensely.

Ben wondered how anyone could have ever left Rey when she was younger. Ben vowed never to let her feel as though she was alone ever again. He wanted to give her all the love she deserved.

He knew now that this included his parents.

Tucking her further into the bedding, Ben brushed one hand over hers and whispered an ‘I Love you’ before standing up in the darkened room.

Ben silently crept toward the door, knowing what he had to do. He slowly swung open the door, wincing slightly as the latched squeaked lightly. Ben turned his head back to where Rey slept, relieved to find her still dead asleep.

Closing the door quietly behind him, Ben began his walk down the hall. The hallway seemed to stretch, elongating his walk toward his inevitable destination.

Turning the corner to the living room, he found what he was seeking.

A single lamp was aglow on the side table, next to a glass of whiskey. Firm hands gripped at a book set between them. The owner’s attention was pulled toward Ben’s intrusion with weary eyes.

The air was calm, nothing like it had been hours earlier. A silent truce.

“Hi, Dad” Ben spoke.


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Han and Ben talk about their complex relationship.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi everyone! So sorry this took so long and I'll try to update more frequently! Hope you enjoy this chapter!

For a few moments, Han and Ben simply looked into each other’s eyes. Each saw the same thing on the other’s face. Neither of them wanted to fight anymore. This fight had been going on for too long.

Ben’s feet felt as if they were glued to the floor, unsure of how he should proceed past his opening line.

Han pushed out his chin toward the leather-bound chair that sat across from him. Ben wordlessly sank down into the seat so that he was on the same level as his father’s eyes. The silence stretched between them as they seemed to sit there staring at each other for hours.

“I was so angry at you for leaving” Han spoke out. Ben’s eyes fell, as some embarrassment crept in. His dad really came out swinging big.

“I was angry at you for pushing me away” Ben replied back, looking up to meet his father’s eyes only to see them fall toward his own feet.

Han remained silent for a few moments. The only sound was a clicking that was coming from the fan that spun in an endless circle above their heads.

Ben looked at his father, trying to read his face. Flashes of regret and sadness ghosted his face.

“I thought that I was doing the right thing. I thought that pushing you would help us both” Han responded.

Ben knew that now. The prospect of becoming a father himself had helped him understand the reasoning behind many of Han’s more regrettable actions.

“I know that you thought that thrusting me into what our family had always been good at was a good idea.” Ben spoke toward his father, keeping his voice neutral. “But…All I wanted was to have you support me, I just felt like I was always letting you down.”

Han closed his eyes and sighed. Exhaling slowly. His heart broke a little reliving the mistake he had made earlier on.

“That’s why I left” Ben stated finally. “I was tired of you, and Luke, and mom pushing me in a direction I didn’t want to go”

“I’m sorry” Han’s voice broke. Not trusting himself to say much beyond those two words. “I never meant for you to feel like you weren’t enough, or that we didn’t love you.”

“I know” Ben spoke back. He could now see all the weight these past few years had on his father. The lines on his face seemed much deeper than they had at breakfast that morning. “I know I wasn’t an easy kid; I shouldn’t have stayed away for so long”.

There was a long pause in the air as Han contemplated what he was going to say next. Ben’s eyes were locked on his fathers, neither man could look away, not wanting to after spending so much time apart.

“When we were in jail and your mother suggested that we call you to come pick us up, I couldn’t believe that you had even agreed to come get us. I had expected to walk out to the teenager that left all those years ago.” Han spoke cautiously. “I thought that you would come back to us still that awkward, stumbling boy that had still needed us even when he left us.”

Ben internally shuttered at his dad’s words. His own insecurities were being hidden a lot better than Han’s. Ben went to respond to his father's confession but was met with more words from his father.

“I didn’t expect you to come back and have your life together. That you had found a girl and your life was happy. That you had found happiness without your mother and I being in your life.” Han began to stumble on his word, the emotions that had been bottled up for 10 years all beginning to spill out. “I didn’t expect you not to need us like we still needed you.”

“Just because I found Rey doesn’t mean I still don’t need you and Mom” Ben confessed. His heart finally speaking into existence a wish he didn’t know he had. One he had spent most of his time away denying. That not only did he still need his parents, but his heart still wanted them in his life. Ben realized that despite the façade he had put on, he really had wanted his parents, his family.

“I didn’t think you wanted me to come back” Ben barely trusted his own voice at this point. His emotions were almost overwhelming. He briefly considered running back to bed to wind his arms around Rey, but then remembered why he was doing this.

Ben had realized through falling in love with Rey why the concept of family had always meant so much to her. She never got a choice in having a family and Ben had taken for granted his. Rey had taught him to love unconditionally and to forgive. She made a better man and he would never stop loving her for that.

“Our biggest regret was letting you leave, thinking we hated you, Ben” Han spoke out to his son.

Ben looked into the eyes of his father, feeling the regret and sadness of watching Ben walking away. He never wanted either of them to feel that way again. He knew that they both deserved better than that. His mother deserved better than that. Rey and their child deserved better than that.

“So, does that mean you forgive me?” Ben asked his father softly. He flashed back to the moment he left. Uncertainty crept in for a brief second, a fear that his father would push him again. The moment passed like a gust of wind. He pushed those feelings away now certain of his father.

“Ben, I know I didn’t act like it, but I forgave you the moment you left.” Han knew this statement to be true. He might’ve been angry with his son, but now realized that it was only that, anger. He had never felt betrayed. Only sadness that he had failed as a father

“When your mother told me that she was pregnant, I was scared. Han continued. “I don’t think that I ever really figured out how to be a good father. But I’m hoping to start trying again.”

Ben’s eyes snapped up to meet his father’s gaze. He only found hope and purpose in his eyes. Not even a hint of anger still lingered. Ben flashed back to a time when Han had been showing him all the flips and switched in his old car. Ben had only been around 8 years old. Tears pricked at the corners of his eyes as he looked at his father.

“Dad……” He faltered. A stray tear fell from one of Ben’s eyes. “You are a good father, I just didn’t give make it easy for you.”

Han noticed the tears bringing to fall on his grow up son’s face and could feel his own come to the surface. He reached over and took his son’s hand. Ben let him.

“I love you son” Han spoke softly. His eyes never wavering from Ben’s.

Han’s hand felt small in Ben’s hand. Again, reminding Ben of his father’s age. This realization came with a pang of regret. A realization that they could never get back what they had lost. Ben pushed those thoughts out of his mind and chose to focus on what they could build in the future

Tears flowed down both the men’s faces at that moment. They finally felt as though they belonged together. Ben felt pride coming from his father, a feeling he hadn’t felt since they sat in the old falcon all those years ago. They instantly reverted back to a time when Han’s hair was less grey, and Ben was still a little boy.

Han gave his son a small smile. He knew that this didn’t end their problems, that there was still a lot to work through, but the biggest cut was healed. They were finally ready to move forward. They released each other’s hands, Ben returning his father’s small smile. They didn’t need words at this moment. Han looked at his son and saw him entirely. Finally, able to understand.

They sat in their feeling of content for a few minutes. Both men basking in this moment.

“So, tell me about this girlfriend of yours” Han started again, a small smirk appeared on his face as he saw Ben’s face light up at the mention of Rey.

“She…. She’s” Ben began, seeming to lose his words, not really sure how to articulate quite what Rey meant to him. “Rey's the best thing in my life.” Ben stated with conviction, like it was the most obvious fact in the world. “She makes me a better man, and I really don’t know where I would be without her” Ben continued. His eyes frosted over, he seemed to get lost in a daze thinking about his lover.

  
Han’s smirk grew, Ben was obviously wrapped around this girl’s finger. “From what I have seen and heard from your mother; she seems pretty incredible.” Han responded, smiling and feeling an overwhelming sense of happiness knowing that his son had found his person.

Ben looked up to meet his father’s gaze, he suddenly felt a surge of excitement to reintroduce Rey to his father. He could almost see into their future, Leia and Han would be exceptional grandparents. This made Ben speak before he really could process the thought.

“Dad… There's something I need to tell you… about Rey”


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey, everyone so sorry it has been a while since I've updated. I was finishing up classes, moving home, and working.
> 
> This story is winding down, maybe just a chapter and epilogue left! I'm so so so excited to move onto other stories and share them with all of you! I hope you all enjoy this chapter!

Rey woke up to a stream of sunlight running into her eyes. Annoyed, she turned the other way, running into Ben’s chest. This instantly diffused her sour mood as she relaxed further into her lover. He looked very much at peace, a welcomed change, Rey thought, from the lines that had been camping out on his face the past few days. She couldn’t quite figure it out, but somehow he looked different, more relaxed, his face smooth and unmarred from worry. Maybe it was simply because he was asleep, but Rey wasn’t sure. A smile broke out across Rey’s face.  
  


She leaned forward and kissed his cheek, where his scar stretched out on his features. Slowly unwrapping herself from Ben, Rey unhurriedly walked with heavy steps toward the bathroom.

Once in the small room, Rey met her reflection’s eyes. She took a moment to gaze at herself in the mirror, eyes drifting down toward her stomach. Her hand followed closely behind and came to rest where she knew their baby, however small, resided.

A smile perked on Rey’s features, she glanced in the mirror past the open door to find Ben still fast asleep in bed. Her smile widened as she stared at his sleeping figure. The light bounced off his pale skin, creating an almost ethereal effect. Rey loved this man with her whole heart. He was her family, and even if Rey couldn’t fix Ben’s familial issues, she knew the two of them would be enough for their child.

Gazing again at her reflection, Rey turned slightly to the side. Maybe her eyes were playing tricks on her or she was imagining things, but she swore she could see a slight bump beginning to form on her lower abdomen. A sign of all the good to come.

Flipping the light off, Rey padded quietly across the bedroom before slowly turning the door handle, wincing at the creaks in the floor. Once the door was open enough for her to slip through, she made her way into the hallway, giving one last loving glance at Ben before closing the door and making her way down the hall.

If this was going to be her last morning here, she was going to try and find at least one embarrassing photo of Ben from his childhood she could use to tease him later. Rey didn’t know when they would be back here. If they would come back.

A small part of her still gripped onto the idea that maybe Ben’s family could replace the one that threw her away so long ago. These thoughts were quickly replaced with memories of Ben’s smile and his hand warm on her own. She knew that he would always be enough for her, and her enough for him if he really didn’t want anything to do with his family anymore.

After the fight with Han the day before, she wouldn’t blame him.

Finding herself in the living room, Rey treaded over to the bookcase in search of a family album. Pulling an older particular looking one off the shelf, Rey sat down in one of the chairs and slowly untied the ribbon holding the pages closed.

  
Rey’s gaze met the smiling faces of Han and Leia. It must’ve been their wedding given their particular attire and the surrounding flowers. Staring at a younger Leia, Rey quickly wondered what she would look like in a long white gown. She smiled at the thought of walking down the aisle toward Ben.

It was obviously something they had discussed before in the soft moments when they had both woken up before the sun and just had time to lay in bed clinging to each other. Rey knew it would happen one day. She wondered if Han and Leia would come, or any other members of Ben’s family. She fingered the page for another moment, looking down at the young, carefree faces of Ben’s parents before moving on.

The next page had a small, soft, black-haired baby, stretched out in the arms of Han, Leia laying in a hospital bed beside him. Large smiles accompanied the happy tears falling down the new parent’s faces. Rey wondered if her parents had held her like that, or if they simply refused and she was ushered away from them. She promised herself that their child would be loved and would never feel alone, the way Rey did when she was a kid. A small tear threatened to push its way out of her eye, but she held it in. She didn’t need her parents anymore; she had spent too much of her life waiting for them.

Pushing forward, she saw different stages of Ben’s childhood, his chubby baby features, replaced with lanky limbs and awkward half-smiles. The one thing that remained was always his large ears. This made Rey smile, a small laugh escaped with her exhale. She wondered what would’ve happened if they would’ve met all those years ago. Rey was thankful they didn’t, he was 5 years older and probably wouldn’t have even glanced at her scrawny form back then”

After a few more pages, she found Ben when he was around 11 or 12 years old. He was obviously not enjoying himself as he stood in a dress suit next to a smiling Han, Leia, and another tan haired man. The two men had their hands clasped over Ben’s shoulders. Rey looked at the portrait and tried to guess why Ben looked so unhappy.

“We had forced him to go to a gala with us.”

Rey jumped at the sudden noise that had invaded her quiet ponderings. She looked up to see Han standing above her. He looked down at the book with an indiscernible look on his face.

“Ben had begged us for days, trying to get us to let him skip the night.” Han slowly sank into the chair sitting across from Rey, leaning toward her, brushing his fingers softly over the page.

Rey sat in her chair, frozen. Her mind was reeling, and she didn’t really know how to react to Han suddenly appearing, and calmly looking at old photos with her.

Han tore his eyes away from the page to look up at Rey, a small smirk began to shape on his face. “Don’t worry, I’m not going to bite you Rey” Han spoke to her, noticing her uneasiness.  
  


Rey’s eyes finally rose off the page and met the older man’s eyes. “Why did you make him go then” Rey questioned, not really knowing where the words her mouth were coming from.

“I honestly don’t really know what the reasoning for making him come, was…. Probably something about putting up a good family image for the foundation we were there to support.”  
Han shrugged, looking back at the pages. “In hindsight, it was likely not the best decision to force him to go to all of those events”.

Rey glanced behind her back, knowing that Ben wouldn’t be happy if he woke up and found her with Han. Throwing caution to the wind, Rey pressed on with the conversation. She could tell that Han was actually trying to be nice and wasn’t looking for a fight.

Han’s hand came over and flipped the page in the photo album, reveling another photo of Ben, a little older now, maybe around 15 or 16 years old. He was standing with the unknown man from the last photo.

“That’s Luke, Leia’s brother” Han spoke, noticing Rey’s puzzled look as she looked at the picture. “This was taken when we began to look at colleges with Ben. Luke is a professor.”  
  


Rey hummed a response. She had heard about Luke before from Ben. Also, she had heard the complicated feelings Ben had with him, knowing that there had been some sort of fallout between them. Rey didn’t really know what to say to Han, it was hard for her to think of topics when all she was thinking about was the conversation her and Ben had in their bathroom the other day. All she saw was the pain and hurt in his eyes

“You know Rey, I do really was to fix my relationship with Ben. I don’t know what conversations you have had with him about this, but I really do want to have you and Ben in Leia and I’s life. “

Rey’s eyes shot up to Han’s, wondering where this conversation had taken a hard-right turn. A slight shot of anger threatened to bubble to the surface. Where was this yesterday when he yelled at Ben during breakfast?

“Ben and I—” Han started.

“No, you don’t have to explain yourself to me.” Rey cut Han off, she knew that it was way too early to get into an argument, but Rey felt that she needed to defend Ben. “Ben and I have built a life together, we are happy. And I don’t know what kind of epiphany you may have had, but I can’t understand how you yelling at him yesterday was in any way trying to repair your relationship” Rey spoke with a firm stance, trying to keep her voice low to avoid waking the other occupants of the house. “He deserves better than that”.

Han looked at Rey shocked, but something else was in his eyes, something that Rey couldn’t describe. His eyes seemed to look past Rey focusing on something behind her.

“I knew I liked this girl Ben” Han spoke into the air behind Rey. “She’s not afraid to put me in my place, and anyone who can do that for you must really love you.”

Rey turned her body to look when Han was speaking. Her eyes looked up to meet Ben’s shining ones. They were still tired but also bright, nonetheless. Her demeanor instantly relaxing at the sight of him.

“I told you last night Dad, she isn’t afraid to lay into anyone who gets on her nerves. I’ve felt her wrath more than a few times” Ben spoke chuckling and moving forward to join Rey and his father.

Rey was frozen in her seat, her eyes following Ben’s movements as he wandered further into the living room.

“You two made up?” Rey looked up at Ben. “Why didn’t you tell me?” Rey spoke mystified.

“You were asleep, I didn’t want to wake you and I just figured that I could tell you in the morning,” Ben said calmly, dragging the footstool over to sit closer to Rey. “How was I supposed to know that for the first time ever, you would be waking up before me.

“Not everything Is fixed, but we had a conversation last night and decided to work toward being more involved in each other’s lives,” Ben spoke to her.

Rey’s heart fluttered; she couldn’t believe what she was hearing. She had been preparing to never see this house again, as well as Han and Leia. Ben’s hand reached out and placed his hand on her own, giving it a reassuring squeeze.

Rey finally knew why Ben had looked so peaceful this morning. He had finally found his way home.

Han looked between his son and his lover, eyes shining at the fact that Ben was happy and had found a partner in Rey. He knew simply by how they were looking at one another that they were everything to each other. This reminded Han of the “not so little fact” that Ben had dropped on him the night before.

“I do believe I own you two a congratulations” Han spoke, a smile playing on his face. “I really didn’t know if I was ever going to get a grandchild. Leia is going to flip off the walls when you tell her”

Rey’s head whipped around, flicking her eyes between Ben and his father, baffled that Han knew that she was pregnant. “You told him?!” Rey spoke at the baby’s father. Ben looked at her sheepishly, leaning back and rubbing a hand through his hair.

“I know we decided to wait to tell people, but it just sort of slipped out yesterday” Ben revealed to Rey, unknowing if she would be angry with him. Rey simply smiled at him.

Leaning forward, Rey looked into his eyes. “I’m happy he knows” She spoke. Ben could tell that tears were threatening to fall from her eyes. Maybe his as well.

“Well if you two lovebirds think that the hard part is over, you are sorely mistaken. Han voiced to the couple. Their eyes shut up to look at him, confused. “Prepare yourself on how you are going to handle your mother when she hears this news, she’s been wanting grandkids for quite some years now”

Ben and Rey looked back at each other with a nervous look, no knowing if they were going to be suffocated by Leia’s reaction. Han looked at the pair with amusement.

They barely had time to think about how they were going to tell Leia when in the next moment they heard her older women’s footsteps climbing down the stairs.

“Good Luck” Han laughed jokingly as the three pairs of eyes glanced at the feet making their way toward them.


	8. Chapter 8

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> 7 months later.

Ben was late. He was never late, but somehow for the biggest moment of his life, Ben was late.

A case at his firm had taken him outside New York to consult with another party as he was finalizing the detail of an estate for a will.

Rey hadn’t been due for another 2 weeks but unlike him, their child was not late.

“Ben! This baby is coming….. NOW” Rey screamed at him through the phone. “You need to get here.” She cried into the phone. “I need you to be here.” Rey finally whispered, fear leaking in through her words.

“I’m coming back as fast as I can sweetheart. I’ll meet you at the hospital.” Ben told her helplessly. He had already rudely walked out on his client. He must’ve looked borderline crazy, his eyes wide and overwhelmed as he stumbled back out to tell them he needed to leave.

Nevertheless, it might all be for nothing as he was stuck in traffic 2 hours away. Gritting his teeth, he leaned his head against the steering wheel giving an anguished groan.

100 miles away, Rey sat at the entrance to their apartment bracing herself for the next wave of pain. Each of them now getting closer and closer together, signaling the impending arrival of their child.

_Their child_. What a terrifying concept. They had spent countless hours lying awake and whispering about what they though he or she may look like or what their name was going to be, but Rey isn’t quite sure she really knew what she was getting into until now.

Sheepishly, after realizing that Ben was still 2 hours away and she had no way to get to the hospital short of an ambulance, Rey had picked up her phone and dialed the next best thing.

As if right on cue, their door flew open revealing a fired-up Leia Organa as well as the man himself…. Han Solo. Ready to become grandparents.

After the escapade weekend picking up Han and Leia from the police station, the older couple slowly began to take their rightful place back in Ben’s life. It started with a weekly phone call, to weekly dinners, to Leia coming to most of Rey’s baby appointments eager to spend time with her new daughter in law.

Rey had never been quite so happy to see them given her current predicament.  
  


“Okay Kid let’s get this show on the road” Spoke Han, who stepped right into the apartment and grabbed the hospital bags, rushing right back out to their car.

Leia ran right to Rey and placed an arm around her waist, helping the younger woman up from the chair. This was no easy feat considering the sizable bump that protruded from her middle.

“Let’s go, my dear, we need to get you some drugs for the pain” Leia spoke with a knowing smile. The older woman guided a wobbly Rey out the door and deposited her in the back seat of their vehicle. Rey flashed back to a few months ago when she had done the same for a quite inebriated Leia. _Oh, how things have changed._

The ride to the hospital took an excruciatingly long time. Rey passed the time texting Ben every other minute. Ranging from how much she needed him to hurry, as well as how much she was going to kill him for putting her in this predicament. Gritting her teeth, Rey’s hands gripped the seat beneath her.

Finally, after an impossibly long time, Han pulled into the hospital parking lot and dropped Rey and Leia at the door before going to find a parking space.

Once inside, and after a few choice words by Leia about how _her grandchild_ was coming into the world _NOW._ Rey was ushered into a hospital gown and given some light pain medications. Not that they did much.

“Okay let’s check to see how far along you are!” A nurse spoke annoyingly brightly to Rey before settling into the space between Rey’s legs.

“Not much time now” she spoke to Rey.

“Nope, Nope, Nope. This baby isn’t coming until Ben is here.” Rey snipped through clenched teeth. She hadn’t meant to snap at the woman but the pain lurching through her body gave Rey the pass she needed.

The nurse threw a confused look at Leia who was sitting next to the younger woman. “Dad is on his way” The older woman supplied.

“Aw…” The nurse responded. “Well the baby is going to come when the baby is going to come, so I hope he gets here soon.” She spoke promptly before retreating from the room.

Tears started to gather in her eyes. “He needs to be here for this. I can’t do this without him.”

Rey spoke, her voice was shaky and weak.

Leia brushed her hand over the younger woman’s and gave her a smile. “He will be here. There’s no way he will let a stupid traffic jam prevent him from getting here."  
  


Rey wanted to believe Ben’s mother; she really did. But with every wave of pain getting closer and closer together, she grew more and more nervous.

Leia pulled out her phone and stepped to the other end of the room. Dialing Ben’s number the phone didn't even ring a full round before her son picked up.

“Mom? Rey is in labor!” Ben practically screamed through the phone, loud enough to make Leia pull it away from her ear.

“We know Ben, who do you think drove her to the hospital?” Leia spoke calmly into the phone.

A pause went through the connecting line. “Thank God” Ben whispered after a few moments. Leia could cry right then and there. She never thought she would get back to a point like this with Ben. And now she was getting a grandchild for good measure. “Okay…. Good. I’m just getting back into the city.” Ben spoke into the phone. “I’ll be there soon”

Leia threw a glance back at Rey, withering in the hospital bed. She still looked so small despite her large bump. “Just hurry Ben” The mother said to her son.

After about an hour of constant contractions, the OBGYN came in with the news that Rey had dreaded. It was time to start pushing.

“No!” Rey cried. “Ben isn’t here yet! I can’t have this baby without him!”  
  


Leia, moved closer to the young girl, placing a hand over hers. Rey’s gaze shot up to meet Leia’s.

“Leia… Please don’t make me do this. Not without Ben. I can’t do this without him”

“He’s coming, he will get here. But, Rey the baby is coming and—”

Leia was cut off by a sudden commotion behind her. Whipping around, she saw Ben stumbling through the door. Still in his dress clothes, but wildly disheveled.

“Ben” Leia heard Rey sigh behind her. Relief flooding through the room.

Her son marched right past the doctor before collapsing to his knees next to Rey’s bedside. He threw his hands to her face, placing kisses all over. “I’m sorry. I’m so sorry. I’m here. I love you.” Her son spoke.

Leia stood back, watching her son hold the woman he loved. Leia had never seen anything so beautiful. To know that her son was home and he was happy. Quietly, she stepped outside giving the couple their privacy. It was their time. Leia had the rest of her life to spend with the child.

Spotting Han in the waiting area, she walked over and collapsed into the chair next to him

“He made it” She breathed out.

Han paused, looking up from the book he had been paging through. “Yup, he did” The older man let a smile gloss his mouth. “Pretty sure he’s going to get his car towed, but he made it”

Leia gave a small chuckle before leaning her head on Han’s shoulder. Exhausted but happy, Leia closed her eyes. Everything would be okay.

—

About an hour later, the doors swung open revealing Ben. He walked toward his parents with a blinding smile on his face, marks where tears had flown down his cheeks still visible. Leia had never seen him so happy.

“It’s a girl.” He said simply. His eyes shining at his parents. Giving a small exasperated exhale. “We have a daughter”

Laughs and sounds of happiness poured out of the three Solo’s as Ben reached forward to pull his parents into a hug. Leia gripped on for dear life, thankful that she could even have this.  
  


After pulling away, Ben wiped his eyes. “Thank you” He said simply. “For being here. I don’t know what we would’ve done without you here”

Han gave Ben a gruff smile. No more words had to be said. They loved each other and that was that.

“Well do we get to meet the little monster then?” Han spoke. With a pat on Ben’s shoulder.

  
Ben gave a small laugh before nodding in the direction of the hospital room. Leading his parents to the door, they stepped inside to meet the new light in their life. Thankful to have found the ability to love each other again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yay! We have finally come to the end! Thank you all for reading and being patient with me! I loved writing this story and I hoped you all enjoyed reading it!
> 
> Feel free to check out either of my other stories on my page! Thanks again for reading! xo


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